Irish oil and gas explorer Petrel Resources has reported a loss of over €2.5m for the 12 month period to the end of December 2014.

The €2.46m loss compares to a loss of just over €745,000 the year before.

Losses per share also rose sharply, jumping from 0.63 cent to 2.97 cent while operating losses increased from €526,783 to just under €3m.

Despite the results chairman John Teeling remained optimistic about the future of the sector and the company’s prospects, although he acknowledged the hammering that the company’s share price has taken in recent years, which has seen it drop in value by 90pc since 2008.

He said: “Investors in Petrel, as in most other junior explorers, have seen their shareholding literally decimated in value.

“We have cash, people and potentially very good ground. There are small signs of life in the stock exchange sector in which Petrel operates. If life blossoms then the potential return is significant.”